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Topic: Fender Pro Jr as lapsteel amp? |
Chris Walke
From:
St Charles, IL
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Posted 4 Dec 2000 3:44 pm |
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| Has anyone tried one of these for lap steel? I love small amps, and I assume this would be great for a naturally overdriven sound. |
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Brad Bechtel
From:
San Francisco, CA
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Posted 4 Dec 2000 4:52 pm
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I use and recommend this amp for lap steel. My only regret is that I didn't get the Blues Junior, which includes reverb. It's small, light and very loud. I can easily keep up with a full band in practice situations. As a matter of fact, the guys in my band asked me to turn down!
I haven't been able to get it to get quite as overdriven as I'd like, but a good overdrive pedal takes care of that.
I've heard of people who've had problems with these amps due to the construction. The volume and tone potentiometers are attached directly to the PCB board, so if someone the connection breaks, the entire board must be replaced. I have to say I've never had a bit of trouble with mine so far.
------------------
Brad's Page of Steel:
www.well.com/~wellvis/steel.html
A web site devoted to acoustic & electric lap steel guitars
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HOWaiian
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Posted 4 Dec 2000 11:31 pm
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weird synchronicity! I just finished e-mailing a friend of mine about this amp. it was absolutely my favorite amp while I was working @ Sam Ash, back in '95 (how weird does that sound..."back in '95"!?!?!). as I wrote to my friend, I'm kicking myself for not having bought one while I working @ the store.
let me put it this way: this amp ROCKS! pound for pound & dollar for dollar, it's the best going that I'm aware of. tonally it's like a tiny AC30: honky, squonky, great OD. the only problem I found with them was that they're generally physically noisy, eg: they have a tendency to rattle. no biggie if you're just jamming, but for recording.....you should definitely give the one you're thinking of buying a good, full-throttle test run to test for this.
I think I'm gonna treat myself to one for Chanukah! I deserve it! so do you!
rock on!
-how |
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Chris Walke
From:
St Charles, IL
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Posted 5 Dec 2000 6:34 am
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Actually, I already have a Blues Jr (like I said, I like small amps). I didn't realize the pro jr didn't come with onboard reverb.
I was messing around with the Blues Jr last night and found some really great tones. Let it overdrive just a bit, add some 'verb...wow. Guess I don't REALLY need the Pro Jr. I get carried away with wanting a totally compact rig. For practice situations, though, I find that the Blues Jr can be just a tad too loud, especially jamming with acoustic players, and I wonder if the Pro Jr would crack out a fat tone at an even lower volume than the Blues Jr. Too bad about the reverb. I thought the Pro Jr came with one. Must have been a dream...a good one.
Getting away from the smaller, more affordable amps, I was wondering if anyone has tried the Gibson Goldtone line for lap steel. They've got a 1x12 with reverb, I believe. I don't like it for lead guitar, but for steel? Never tried it, myself. Anyone?
Brad, How, thanks for the feedback!! |
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Wyn Walke
From:
VA
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Posted 5 Dec 2000 6:53 am
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Chris, I also have the Blues Jr, great amp. Agree with Brad about adding overdrive pedal, but it'll still be fine without one.
I don't think the Pro Jr is a better solution than the Blues Jr, stick with what you already have, you'll be fine......
For fat sounds in low volume situations, crank up the volume knob all the way, make sure the fat switch is pressed in(ON), then use the master control for desired loudness.
Wyn |
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Chris Walke
From:
St Charles, IL
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Posted 5 Dec 2000 7:22 am
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Wyn, interesting last name. I don't encounter many Walkes. Do you have any relatives in Canada? There's a Walke family up there that contacted my father regarding our family history. Trying to put together a family tree.
Oh yeah, thanks for your thoughts on the amp! |
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Matt Farrow
From:
Raleigh, NC, USA
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Posted 5 Dec 2000 12:45 pm
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The Blues Jr and Pro Jr are essentially the same amp, same transformers and tube complement. However, the Blues Jr has a tone stack (bass, mid, treb.) reverb, and a larger cab with a 12" speaker. It's not any louder, really, but the speakers can have something to do with that. The Pro Jr. is loud enough to gig with standard guitar, I did for months. I played a show with nothing but a guitar, tape echo and Pro Jr. in front of 800 people at a local club. My dumb self forgot to pack my bigger, "better" amp in the van the night before, and the Pro Jr. was the only thing my girlfriend could carry!
My $.02
Matt Farrow
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Andy Volk
From:
Boston, MA
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Posted 5 Dec 2000 2:07 pm
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| I have a Blues Jr. and I've been very happy with it for both lap steel use and a rich, warm tone for jazz on standard guitar. As Brad says, you really need an outboard pedal for distortion/overdrive crunch. You can drive the Jr. for distortion as is but it gets uncomfortably loud for most situations. I play a 30's Gibson, a 30's Bakelite and a Weissenborn w/ a Rare Earth Pick-Up thru it and all sound great. It's a big improvement over the Peavy Classic 30 I used to have. [This message was edited by Andy Volk on 05 December 2000 at 02:09 PM.] |
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